Chapter: 56th International Kyudo Competition
"Good morning, Mash. You're here early today," Shirou said with a smile.
Mash nodded. "Yes, since the International Youth Sports Competition is about to start. The other senpai should be coming as well, right?"
"If you could be selected to compete, that would be even better," Shirou said.
Mash blushed slightly, clenched her fist, and promised, "I'm still far from that level, but on the day of the competition, I'll definitely come and cheer you on, Shirou-senpai!"
"Yeah, thank you." Seeing that Mash wasn't discouraged, Shirou felt relieved.
Ever since the situation with Perseus was resolved, the world had returned to normal—at least on the surface.
Although magical beasts still roamed in alternate spaces and occasional sudden earthquakes caused buildings to shake and appeared on the news, no one had been injured so far.
Following Da Vinci's advice, Shirou and the girls chose to stay here to eliminate the monsters in the nearby alternate spaces first.
After all, there were still six more Heroic Spirits corrupted by the black mud like Perseus, who could attack this world at any moment, or might have already infiltrated alternate spaces undetected.
Only once Da Vinci had fully assessed the situation and developed a thorough plan could they act.
Otherwise, the consequences would be catastrophic.
In the meantime, they focused on clearing magical beasts from the Tokyo metropolitan area and places that could be reached within a couple of hours. On weekends, they would venture farther to clean up more distant areas.
Thanks to this temporary peace, Shirou and Mash had time to participate in club activities at school.
A nationwide sports event was coming up, and as the captain of the kyudo club, Shirou naturally had to take part.
It was said that this time, the organizers had invited teams from countries such as China, Korea, and Singapore. The national-level competition had effectively been upgraded to a small-scale international tournament.
Even the club members who usually slacked off had come to practice these past few days.
Once Komachi's exams ended in a couple of days, Shirou would head to Tokyo to participate in the international match. By the time he returned, the school should have posted the admissions results.
"Yo, Shirou! Mash-chan's here too, huh? You two are together again today," said a tall, skinny male student walking in with a laugh. It was Nasu Yoichi, the kyudo club captain and one of Shirou's teammates in the group match. Though nearly 190cm tall, his arms and legs were thinner than many girls'.
"Hey, Nasu," Shirou greeted with a simple nod.
Although Nasu was the captain, he was mostly in name only and rarely showed up.
"Good morning, Nasu-senpai," Mash said politely.
"Hey, that's a pretty lukewarm reaction," Nasu muttered. He had wanted to tease them a bit, but their calm demeanor left him no room to do so.
"Morning, everyone!" Another male student entered with a hearty laugh. It was the club's vice-captain, Taira Noritsune, and another of Shirou's teammates.
He was the complete opposite of Nasu—short and stocky, with a muscular build that looked intimidating up close.
"Morning, Noritsune. Since all three members of the men's team are here, let's start practice," Shirou said.
"Yeah, yeah! We're counting on you, Ace! If you're serious, you never miss, right?" Noritsune laughed.
"I'll do my best not to drag us down. Let's aim for the top five and try to break into the top three," Nasu said with a relaxed smile.
"...Senpai, do your best!" Mash said, slightly confused.
She couldn't understand why, with a teammate who could hit every shot, the team's goal was only the top five.
For a moment, she wasn't sure whether their kyudo club was strong or weak.
But in any case, cheering them on was the right thing to do.
"Alright, let's get changed and start practicing," Shirou said, heading to the locker room.
"Got it! Looking forward to it, Ace!" Noritsune responded with a laugh.
Although Mash's feelings were understandable, that was just the state of the school.
They had recruited a special talent, salvaged their reputation, and then stopped paying much attention.
Nasu and Noritsune were, in fact, the best the kyudo club could offer.
So there was nothing more to say—practice.
Sudden improvements might vanish just as suddenly.
Results could fluctuate wildly. But practice never lies.
"Yo, Mash, everyone's already practicing, huh?" A long-haired teacher in a white lab coat entered, nodding in satisfaction at the students training inside.
"Good morning, Hiratsuka-sensei. You're at school surprisingly early today," Mash said, surprised. This teacher usually entered the classroom just on time.
Looking displeased, Hiratsuka replied, "Mash… you don't have a problem with me, do you? As the club advisor, it's only natural I come here! I'm usually at school by this time anyway... on the road (muttering)."
"Is that so?" Mash thought this teacher resembled the lazy adults at Chaldea.
"Of course! Shirou, come over here!" Hiratsuka abruptly called out, eager to change the subject.
"Hiratsuka-sensei? You're early today," Shirou said, walking over and placing his bow back on the rack.
"Don't be so chatty! It's just one thing, stop babbling! Are you my mom or something?" Hiratsuka yelled.
"Huh? What's going on?" Shirou looked at Mash, puzzled.
Why's she suddenly mad and saying that? I never thought about becoming someone's mom...
"..." Mash shook her head. She realized this teacher was a bit more childish than the adults at Chaldea.
Hiratsuka explained, "Anyway, I wanted to check on your preparations. I already told you that the competition rules were changed, right?
The team match with Japanese bows won't be reliable. But the school still wants you to participate in the recurve bow match."
Shirou nodded. "That's no problem. For me, it doesn't really matter which type of bow I use."
Because the national competition had been upgraded to an international one, seemingly for commercial reasons, the entire event format had changed.
Traditional kyudo matches were moved to small indoor venues, while recurve bow matches were held on a large lawn and had a much bigger scale.
Of course, for the practical-minded Shirou, as long as he could hit the target, it didn't matter which bow he used. That said, he still observed the traditional etiquette and form required in kyudo competitions.
"That's great! It's reassuring to have you in the mix. Ahaha! Bring back lots of medals for me! Now, get back to practice," Hiratsuka said, slapping Shirou's back.
Shirou's back stung as he was pushed back toward the range.
"Oh, right! Mash, since I'm here early for once, let's play some FGO together," Hiratsuka suggested.
"Eh? But the senpai are practicing here. Wouldn't it be rude to disturb them?" Mash was tempted but glanced at Shirou.
"Then let's go play outside," Hiratsuka said, dragging Mash toward the door.
"By the way, Sensei, did you get Shishou last time you rolled?" Mash asked.
"Don't bring that up..." Hiratsuka hung her head in disappointment.
"It's okay, Sensei! The 3-rank Shishou is going to be released soon! She looks younger too.
A beauty like you will definitely pull her!" Mash encouraged her with clenched fists.
Hiratsuka instantly perked up and laughed heartily. "Ahaha, right, right! That's true. I'll do a few more rolls. No—maybe I'll get her in just one ticket!"
"Actually, I feel like my luck's been good lately too. Maybe I'll get a gold card next time!"
The two chatted and left the kyudo club together.
"..."
Shirou picked up his bow and resumed practice. Only the sound of arrows slicing through the air and striking the target remained.